Kaiser Permanente - Los Angeles,CA

I've had Kaiser all my life and had my two kids there as well as surgery. I love Kaiser. After my COBRA ran out we kept Kaiser. It's not cheap by any means but worth it. They are caring and there are mostly excellent doctors and nurses. They're very responsive if you have any complaints. I like having everything all in one spot: doctors, nurses, lab, x-ray, mammogram, pharmacy, specialists, OBGYN, and the list goes on. They are constantly upgrading their service and responsiveness. Good luck! You won't regret going with Kaiser.

Hi D.:

I have had Kaiser since my oldest son was 8 months old and he is now 13. I can tell you that I truly LOVE Kaiser and though I have had the opportunity to change insurance several times - I have alwasy opted to stay with Kaiser. My 13-year old has epilepsy and his nuerologist is FABULOUS! My 7 year old daughter had a tumor growth on her gums and the treatment she received during her surgeries (unfortunately it is a recurring tumor ~ we're praying it doesn't come back a 3rd time) has been wonderful - very caring and loving from both doctors and nurses. I myself have had 3 children and the prenatal care and births have been outstanding - comparable or even better than my cousin's who gives birth at Cedar's Sinai!

I love that I can view my family's medical history online, that I can email and expect a response within 24 hours, and that I have a nurses call line 24/7.

As you can see, I really use my benefits and am a pleased as can be with Kaiser - and I am typing this a few minutes after I made an appointment with the pediatrician for my 10 year old son's bad cough/cold.

By the way, my hubby too loves his doctor and actually sees him voluntarily whenever anything arises - which most men don't do...he's just that comfortable with his doctor.

Hope it helps!

M.

I have had Kaiser for the past 9 years and LOVE LOVE LOVE it! They are very proactive with health management. You have access to everything online, including your doctor, appointment center, and pharmacy refills. It's really convenient. You can even have a phone appointment if your doctor deems that it's adequate (for example, last time I had flu-like symptoms, I emailed my doc with my symptoms and asked if he felt I needed to come in or if it would just pass, he followed up with a phone call to me to get more info, and then just filled a prescription for me so I just drove to the pharmacy and picked it up, no wait or visits required). I do go to the Harbor City facility, and I haven't experienced any long waits or issues there, I'm usually in the doctor's office within 10 minutes max of my appointment time. They're also great about giving referrals for specialists, etc. via phone or email requests too. And your entire medical history is available online, with information about past visits. This has been convenient for me because with two toddlers in tow, sometimes by the time I leave the doctor's office I've already forgotten some aspect of the instructions the pediatrician has given, and I can just log into my kids' past visit info and see everything there. Good luck!

I have had Kaiser for years and for the most part I like them and think I have a great set of docs. But like anywhere else there are definitely some not so good ones.

N.

Hello D.! I have had Kaiser since I was a child. It has always been a good experience for me! As an mom with kids I can make appointments on the phone, call an advice nurse 24 hours a day to see if I need to take my kid in, email my doctor, make same day appts and for me the price is right. Also, my (now 3 year old) had surgery to correct sagittal synostosis when he was months old and their surgeons were some of the best in the nation (when I researched online!) They took care of everything with the surgery and were so nice/caring. Also, I loved the way I was treated in the hospitals when giving birth...they were nice!

I have many friends and family with Kaiser who are very happy. You can choose any doctor within Kaiser and change easily if you don't like them. I live on the border of LA/OC and go back and forth from LA to Kaiser facilities depending on where we are and the appts available! Email me if you have more questions! :) Good luck with your decision!

I've had Kaiser for the past 5 years and delivered my baby girl at West LA in '09. I was nervous about the switch, too. Thankfully, I'm pretty healthy and rarely need to see a doctor, but all of my experiences have been positive. And if you know the system you can minimize some of the challenges other patients have.

All of the doctors are on email. Some are better about responding than others, but you can get so many questions answered this way and save both you and the doctor a lot of time. Also, you can manage appointments, see test results, get a summary of your last appt, etc. online.

While their schedules are usually set weeks/months in advance, you can always ask your doctor (by email) or call the nurses stations to see if they can squeeze you in when it's really urgent. Same day appts are with other doctors in the group are available, as well.

Book your appointments first thing in the morning or right after lunch to avoid long waits. Parking at West LA can be tough. Plan to arrive early. My doctor has a no tolerance policy on tardiness.

Your primary doctor will have to give you a referral if you need to see a specialist. If you can get an appointment right away, ask about cancellations.

In terms of technology, they seem way ahead of other providers. I love that all of my records are accessible to each and every doctor I see. I don't have to worry about requesting copies and making sure they get where they need to be. My mom is 65 and I wish she would go with Kaiser. I just worry about keeping all of her doctors, records, meds straight when she gets older.